Visual Cues... (aka the almost-13-weeks Post!)

So Ben has officially discovered his hands (we can usually find him sucking down both thumb and forefinger at the same time, or chowing down on the entire fist...)

His salivary glands have officially kicked into gear, too... (salivary glands? spit makers? I'm just pulling that term out of the air - in plain English, the kid drools like a St Bernard...)

His neck is getting strong (like a St Bernard! ok, ok I'll stop comparing my baby to a mountain rescue dog...) and he don't mess around when it comes to Tummy Time! (He watched nearly 2 whole minutes of play from the Pats-Saints game this way yesterday - GO PATRIOTS!)

We spent the weekend down in Seaside Heights (probably our last trip for the season) and we had lots of fun at the Columbus Day festival they had - we even got to watch newlyweds emerge from the church right after their ceremony - so sweet!

And down in Seaside, Ben slept the LONGEST STRETCH EVER.  It's marked on his FirstYear calendar - kid conked out from 9:45 til 5-FRIGGING-AM... YOU GUYS that's over 7 hours!

And then I laid awake for 45 minutes after the diaper-change/bottle-feed/pump-session because, well - six hours is the longest stretch of sleep I've gotten since the day before he was born and Momma was well rested - we even went back to bed for another four hours...
 **knocks knuckles with desk** - The last few nights have been nearly just as long, here's hoping 8+ hours is just around the corner...
Because he is just too damn cute first thing in the morning when he sees Mommy...

(yes, blurry - but you get the gist = HAPPY BABY!! =)

He slept great again on the 1.5hr carride home (yesssss - and don't worry, I fixed his hat as soon as I was done cracking up and taking pictures...) #mommyoftheyear

With all the sleep lately, we had no issue staying up last night to catch the season premiere of W.alking Dead with our little ass kicker* (check out the onesie in the next pic!):

He did NOT like hearing that his bedtime was before the show started:

There's times I laugh at how dramatic his cries get... lol

I'm still a dairy cow (EPing long and strong!) and probably would technically have a slight over-supply if I was EBFing, but I get to bank a nice freezer stash now... almost 100+ ounces!  With my original mini-goal of 3 months right around the corner (OHMIGAWD he'll be three months in just a few days!!) I'm gonna throw a mini-celebration... maybe have a few many drinks one night, and pump and dump (something I try to avoid at all costs...) but hey, we gonna CE-LE-BRATE good milk, COME ON!

My plan? Just go as long as I feel like I can... with a 4 day trip to Washington (state) one week before Thanksgiving (to see my new niece - born Friday night! SHE'S SO PRECIOUS!), I'm going to have to make a decision if I want to worry about bringing my hospital grade pump AND the portable Medela (6 hour plane ride plus travel to/from airport without pumping equals OW OW OW and I LOOK LIKE A PORNSTAR!) or if I want to try and wean before then...
It would be serious dedication, on top of the planning that I'm starting NOW, a full month ahead of time, for first-time traveling with an infant...

I do have a girls' trip booked in February - 4 nights in beach-side cottages in the Florida Keys! - and I'm pretty sure I'll be done by then... (although the girls I'm going with are all NICU nurses and are all, "hunnie I've seen a million boobs - I can even help you with any clogged ducts if you need!")

Speaking of clogged ducts - Lefty keeps throwing mini clogs here and there that usually work out within a pump or two, but this morning I must have unclogged something that had been building up for a few days, bit by bit...

And how do I know?

Because Lefty (usually a 1-ouncer) out-pumped Righty for the first time.  EVAR...HOLY MILK, Batman!

Nothing like freshly-pumped breast milk (enough to make my BIL queasy - he's weird like that) for a parting note...
'Til next week!